Beck, Lindbery Take Same Road To Victory

May 22, 1988|By Frank Carroll of The Sentinel Staff

Four-year letterman Ron Beck and three-year letterman Jennifer Lindbery share more than an affinity for tennis. Since 1987, they have held down the No. 1 singles position for respective Gateway and St. Cloud high schools. Both also are self taught.

''I've never had a professional lesson,'' said Lindbery, 17, who saw tennis in 1986 as an easy route to acquire points in a bid to earn a letter jacket.

Beck, 18, who lettered as a freshman and sophomore at Greenville (Pa.) High before transferring to Gateway last year, mirrors Lindbery in that he too has avoided seeking professional lessons but seldom settles for anything short of victory.

For the past two years, Beck consistently has been the county's most successful player with a combined 12-5 record. Lindberry was 3-6, splitting matches with county rivals Yanira Gonzalez of Gateway and Andrea Beougher of Osceola, but enjoyed more year-end success in Orange Belt Conference and district tournaments.

Beck and Lindbery are the Osceola Sentinel's 1988 tennis athletes of the year. The title is old hat for Beck, who repeats an honor he won last year. Lindbery is being honored for the first time, an honor shared by eight of the 10 being selected. Gateway's Polly Rodeffer is the only other repeat selection from 1987.

''I was happy with my year,'' Beck said. ''Even through I didn't progress as much as I had expected over last year, I was disappointed that I was unable to play matches against more people closer to my own capabilities. It seemed most of the people I played was either far advanced or far behind my level.'' Lindbery said she was up front with St. Cloud Coach Susan Bailey as a sophomore. ''I'd never played before and told her that lettering in a varsity sport, even if it meant I had to set on the bench, was worth 18 points toward my jacket,'' she said.

Lindberry did a lot of sitting as a sophomore until Bailey became irritated with her lackadaisical approach to practice.

''All she wanted was a letter. She didn't care if she played a lot,'' Bailey said. ''Then I got upset at her one day in practice. I won't tell you what I yelled at her but I never had to yell at her again.''

It didn't take Lindberry long to spring from bench warmer to the Bulldogs' starting lineup. ''I beat everybody that tried out last year and became No. 1,'' she said.

Once Lindbery was motivated, she took tennis to heart.''I play for pleasure,'' she said. ''Tennis is a sport where you're judged doing your own thing. It's not a team. It's just you. That way you know what you're capable of doing or not doing.''